


The Greater Good

by Barb Cummings (Rahirah)



Series: The Barbverse [35]
Category: Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Genre: Angst, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-06-02
Updated: 2012-06-02
Packaged: 2017-11-06 15:54:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 264
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/420646
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rahirah/pseuds/Barb%20Cummings
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>An uncomfortable dinner.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Greater Good

**Author's Note:**

> This story takes place in the same universe as _A Raising In the Sun_ et al., and contains spoilers for previous works in the series.

When the woman at the next table collapses in hysterics, screaming about the _diablo_ who killed _mi hermano,_ the waiter's all apologies. Management moves them to another table. Paramedics come, and the distraught woman goes. She's so obviously unhinged, and they're so obviously a nice young (let's face it, white) couple - there won't be any follow-up.

Afterwards, Buffy stabs her fork at a salad gone tasteless, shredding radicchio into its component molecules. Spike watches her, head cocked, a baffled crease in his brow. "It's not your fault," he says at last. "What I did before... before you." Silence. Buffy takes a vicious jab at an unsuspecting tomato. They've had this argument before. They'll have it again. But in his way he's just as stubborn as she is. "It's for her you let me go, you know, not some self-indulgent romantic whim. You hated my sodding guts back then. Acathla would've taken 'em all if you hadn't, her and her brother included."

Her lips tighten. "I rated my sister above the world once. Why shouldn't she do the same with her brother?"

There's no reply to that, or none she'll take without this escalating to a fist-fight. At length Spike sighs and tucks into his steak; he knows better, after all these years, to try to derail her self-flagellation train. Little as he likes it, if he asks _Was it worth it?_ her answer is sometimes going to be _For who?_

And little as he understands that part of her, he doesn't really want to think about who or what she'd be without it.

**End**


End file.
